“For 5 years I have had papers and a good job thanks to them”, a former prostitute assisted by the organisation that receives the support of the Department of Social Affairs and Sports.

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Casal Petit belongs to an international organisation that works in favour of comprehensive care for prostitution, the Oblate Sisters, and was established in the Balearic Islands in the mid-1980s. Based in Palma since 2001, Casal Petit “is a care centre with several projects that try to cover the needs and accompany women in prostitution. Initially we worked with street prostitution, but because prostitution is a mutable phenomenon, which is constantly changing, we have adapted to the changes and now we intervene in flats, clubs, offshore prostitution, whether it is internet, web…”, explains Jaume Perelló, its coordinator and social educator. “Mostly Casal Petit is attending to undocumented foreign women and it is certainly a problem when it comes to finding work”. Currently, the organisation provides comprehensive care to some 380 women who depend on prostitution in Palma.

“They have given me a lot. When I arrive in Mallorca, I don’t have money or papers, I’m afraid of the police so that they don’t send me back to my country”. This is the testimony of one of the former prostitutes who receive care from Casal Petit. “I’ve had papers for five years, now I have a good job, thanks to them”. In 2005, when she arrived in Mallorca, she received help from the organisation in obtaining residency papers, as well as support in acquiring the skills to be able to speak, write and read. “They even taught me maths so I could give change back”.

The improvement of living conditions facilitated by Casal Petit is thanks to a network of around thirty volunteers dedicated to linguistic competence or psychology. “They are interested in increasing their knowledge, learning and improving their conditions in general, and it also becomes a meeting point for sharing,” says Camino González, one of the volunteers who teaches them English.

“Casal Petit has created me, we have to give love, friendship, we have to know how to speak, we have to have rights, because women have rights”, concludes the former prostitute.

The project is supported by the Conselleria de Asuntos Sociales y Deportes, through the 0.7% solidarity box of the IRPF Social.